Motorists Believe Insurance Has Fallen Off Government Agenda

A majority of motorists now believe that the issue of tackling rising motor insurance prices has fallen off the Government’s radar, recent research from AA Ireland has found.

In response to a survey of over 4,000 motorists undertaken by AA Car Insurance, 42.18% of respondents stated that they strongly believe the issue of insurance prices is no longer as important to government as it was 12 months ago. Meanwhile, a further 23.48% of those surveyed stated that the ‘somewhat believed’ government interest in the issue had declined since this time last year.

“For consumers the issue of motor insurance prices is still a hot button issue, but it feels like the political interest in finding a solution has declined as a result of other issues coming to the fore. While dealing with Brexit and the housing crisis obviously require a great deal of attention, that does not mean the government can take their eye of the ball in tackling this issue and simply hope people will forget,” Conor Faughnan, AA Director of Consumer Affairs stated. “In recent months we have seen the CSO reporting minor declines in insurance premiums, the overwhelming majority of motorists are still paying far more for cover than they were in previous years and some are struggling to cope.”

The AA research also found that almost three quarters of motorists are more concerned about the cost of car insurance than they were at this point last year.

49.75% of respondents stated they strongly agreed with a prompt that insurance costs were of greater concern to them than this time twelve months ago. Meanwhile, a further 24.75% of motorists surveyed partially agreed with this same prompt.

“Rising insurance costs have been a major concern for motorists for a number of years now and while we did see some progress early in 2017, there has been little done in recent months to reassure motorists,” Faughnan added. “For many people across the country the private car is their only reliable method of getting to and from work every day and, as a result of the government’s slow progress, it is becoming increasingly difficult for people to cover these costs.”

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